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Maggie Grey is currently the editor of Workshop on the Web, an internet-based magazine and was previously editor of The World of Embroidery magazine. In addition to this she travels extensively, teaching embroidery and computer textile design. She has taught and lectured by invitation in Australia, New Zealand and was one of the tutors at the stitch jamboree sponsored by Textile Fibre Forum in Mittagong, New South Wales, Australia in April 2002. She taught in Canada and the USA in 2003 and returned to Canada in 2004 for further teaching. 2005 saw Maggie in Australia and Canada where she had a most successful exhibition. She was teaching in New York in 2006 and Jersey in 2007. This latter event included a visiting artist spot on BBC Radio Jersey. She hopes to do a show and a class in Perth, Western Australia, next August.
Maggie's writing career began when she developed textile modules for the Royal College of Art Schools Technology Project. Her book 'Layers of Stitch' was written jointly with Valerie Campbell-Harding and published by B T Batsford in September 2001. A further book, 'Celtic Inspirations for Machine Embroidery', also with Val, was published in 2002. In 2003, Maggie's book, 'Raising the Surface with Machine Embroidery', was published and this was followed by 'Paper, Metal & Stitch', written with Jane Wild, in 2004. This has been reprinted many times. A further book with Val, 'Stitch Dissolve Distort', was published in 2006. 'Embellish and Stitch' was Maggie's first venture in self-publishing, in partnership with photographer Michael Wicks. Very sadly this will be the last of her collaborations with Val as she died in October 2006. Maggie's latest book, 'From Image to Stitch', published by B T Batsford, is now available and has already gone for reprint. Here next book, 'Textile Translations: Mixed Media', to be published by d4daisy books, is due in October. Maggie has been involved with computers all her working life and was a founder member of the influential Computer Textile Design Group, becoming its vice chairman and leading their education sub-committee. With husband Clive, she ran computer to stitch classes, including Australia in 2005 - the first time such a course was offered by the forum organisers. As a member of the group Wessex Textile Artists she welcomes the chance to exhibit with like-minded stitchers. If it wasn't for the deadlines imposed by exhibiting she feels that little finished work would be done. Artist's Statement My work features both hand and machine embroidery, including the use of computer controlled machines. The Embellishing machine is a great new addiction. I work with mixed media techniques which include burning, moulding and melting. New materials are of great interest. Current obsessions include research on icons, mosaics and rain forests. I am, at present, working on a series inspired by one of the 'Earth from the Air' books and you can see a piece from this below. My sketchbooks are important to me and I scan drawings into the computer to work them up into designs. I am particularly drawn to distressed surfaces and my first instinct on being presented with a new material is to don a respirator and set fire to it. |
